1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to hearing devices, and particularly those used by hearing impaired people while attending concerts, plays and other entertainment or educational affairs in an enclosed environment such as a theater, auditorium or other assembly room where acoustical aid is needed. A number of products are available to help people with hearing impairments to overcome their poor hearing.
One class of equipment for overcoming hearing problems comprises a receiver supported by the head of a user and a pair of earphones supported adjacent to the ears of the user. This prior art equipment also includes a housing containing a receiver, such as an FM or infrared sensor or the like, which responds to signals emitted by a transmitter. This equipment also contains means to amplify the signal and convert it to energy that drives the earphones mounted on or in a user's ears. A power source such as a battery is also included in the prior art equipment.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A novelty search of the patented art relating to hearing devices, and particularly, those that are capable of moving between an expanded operational configuration and a contracted configuration for storage when not in use, discovered the following patents: U.S. Pat. No. 4,409,442, issued Oct. 11, 1983 to Kamimura; U.S. Pat. No. 4,445,005, issued Apr. 24, 1984 to Furuhashi; U.S. Pat. No. 4,463,223, issued Jul. 31, 1984 to Yamanoi et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 4,465,907, issued Aug. 14, 1984 to Minear et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 4,517,418, issued May 14, 1985 to Baran et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 4,571,746, issued Feb. 25, 1986 to Gorike; U.S. Pat. No. 4,597,469, issued Jul. 1, 1986 to Nagashima; U.S. Pat. No. 4,609,786, issued Sep. 2, 1986 to Omoto et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,027,433, issued Jun. 25, 1991 to Menadier et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,095,382, issued Mar. 10, 1992 to Abe; U.S. Pat. No. 5,099,519, issued Mar. 24, 1992 to Guan; and U.S. Pat. No. 5,253,095, issued Oct. 12, 1993 to Menadier et al.
None of the patents found in the novelty search discloses a collapsible hearing device comprising a base housing constructed and arranged to have dimensions sufficiently small to fit inside a case on the order of magnitude of an eyeglass case and also provided with a pair of jointed extension arms each constructed and arranged with a pivot pivotally connecting a distal portion of said extension arm to its proximal portion. The distal portion carries an earphone tip thereon. The structural elements of the prior art devices shown in the enumerated patents are not capable of folding inward from an unfolded configuration when in use to a closed configuration in which the portions of the extension arms encompass the base housing in such a closely hugging relation that the device when closed is capable of fitting within a storage case whose size approximates that of an eyeglass case.
Because of the novel construction of the collapsible hearing device of this invention, it is possible for a theater to store many cases containing hearing devices in a storage space considerably smaller than was required for the large hearing devices of the prior art. Also, for those users who prefer to carry their personal hearing devices with them, it is much more convenient for them to carry their hearing device in a carrier case of a size comparable to an eyeglass case than the bulkier devices of the prior art.
In addition, many of the patented hearing devices of the prior art are constructed and arranged to fit over the head of a user. Such constructions pose a problem of grooming, particularly with women, since the hair engaging structural element of the hearing device tends to spoil a woman's hairdo when the device is used. While the headset of this invention can be worn over the head if the user cares to do so, the present invention makes it possible for a user to wear the hearing device under the chin without disturbing any hairdo.